Life-boat.



- M. P. HOY.

LIFE BOAT;

Application fileu June 9, 1899.)

(No Model.) 2 Shaets-$heet I.

No. 663,!72; Patented Dec. 4, I900.

\H WITNESSES I) NVENTOR J No. 663,l72.

LIFE BOAT.

Application filed June 9, 1899.)

2 sheets sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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N Q NH mm I NITED STATES] P TENT OFFICE.

MARIUS r. HOY, OF TACOMA, WASHINGTON, nss enon or ONE-HALF TO CHAUNOEYs. UPRIGHT, on SAME PLACE.

LIFE-IBOAT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 663,172, dated December4, 1900. Application filed June 9,1899. $eria1No. 719,995- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, M-ARIUS P. HOY, a citizen of the UnitedStates,residing at Tacoma,

in the county of Pierce and State of Washington, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Life-Boats; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and usethe same.

My invention relates to improvements in life-boats; and it consists inaboat made in cylindrical shape having bulkheads for dividing it intovarious compartments, means in one compartment for propelling the boat,and means in another compartment for steering the same, the centralcompartment being provided with air-tubes for supplying sufficient airfor the occupants thereof.

It also consists of certain other novel constructions, combinations, andarrangements of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation of alife'boat constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 representsa longitudinal vertical section through the same. Fig.3 represents avertical transverse section through the central portion of the saidboat. Fig. 4 represents a detail sectional view showing how oars may beapplied for propelling the boat. Fig. 5 represents a detail view showingthe means of bracing a mast in place, and Fig. 6 represents aperspective View of a grapple for raising the anchor.

l in the drawings represents a life-boat constructed in accordance withmy inventionyZ,

a central chamber for the occupants of the boat; 3 and 4E, chambers forthose who are handling the anchor and steering the boat, respectively.

My improved life-boat is designed to be so inclosed that water cannotenter the same even in an exceedingly rough sea, and it is soconstructed as to be bouyant even though one or more of the compartmentsshould become filled with water.

the person who operates the anchor.

casing, tapering toward a sharp bow and stern, as illustrated in thedrawings. The casing of the boat may be made of any suitable substance,but is preferably formed of metal. At suitable intervals in the interiorof the structure I mount bulkheads, as 5 5 and 6 7. The bulkheads 5 5inclose the central chamber, which is the largest one in the boat,occupying about two-thirds of its size and afiording sufficient spacefor a number of'oecupants. The bulkhead 6 divides the bow portion intotwo compartments, the compartment 3 of which is adapted to be used byThe other compartment is further divided by a horizontal partition 8into upper and lower compartments, which may be used for storing food orother articles. The bulkhead 7 likewise divides the stern of the boatinto two compartments, of which the compartment 4 is adapted to beoccupied by the party steering the boat. The other compartment isfurther divided into upper and lower spaces, as 9 and 10, which may beused for storing food and other articles. Each of the bulkheads isprovided with a sliding door, as 11, which doors are adapted to closedoo rwaysin the said bulkheads. These doorways form means ofcommunication between the diderent compartments of the boat and areordinarily kept in a closed condition to prevent the chance of all thecompartments being filled with water in case one of them should have anaccident.

The boat 1 is provided with a keel of considerable size, as 12, whichpreferably extends the whole length of the boat and at the rear end isprovided with recesses to accommodate the propeller 13' and the rudder14:, the said keel completely protecting the said propeller and rudder.Around the sides of the boat I preferably construct a fender, as

15, which afifords protection to the sides of the boat. The boat is alsoprovided with a large central hatchway, asl6, leadinginto the centralcompartment 2, said hatchway being provided with hatches or covers 17,which slide apart to open the said hatchways, as clearly seen in Fig. 3of the drawings. When the hatches 17 are opened, the boat is practicallyconverted into an open one. The hatches are made to fit snugly intoposition and may have rubber packing around their edges, if necessary,and may be held in place by means of clamping-screws operated from theinside to make them entirely water-tights...

The compartments 3 and 4 are also provided with sliding hatches, as 18and 19, which may be closed when the said compartments are not'in use.When it is necessary for a person to work in the hatchways 1b and 19, aswhen handling the anchor or steeringthe boat, it is desirable to preventthe water entering the compartments 3 and 4, and for purpose I provideflexible aprons, as 2 0,

whichare secured to the edges of the said hatchways at one end and attheir otherends are provided with draw-strings or other means ofsecuring the said aprons snugly about the waist of the person in thesaid compartments. This will be found a very con venient means ofpreventing water .from entering the compartment 3 when it is necessaryto have the hatches 18 and 19 open. In order to supply suitableventilation and sufficient air for the occupants of the compartments 2,I provide air-tubes, as 21 2% f any suitable design, which may, forinstance, be made of two telescoping sections, the lower section 22 ofwhich tube is braced with respect to the bulkhead 5 by means of anysuitable bracket, as 23, saidtube being open at its lower end andopening directly into the chamber 2. Sliding in the tubes 22 are theup.-

per telescoping tubes 25, which are provided with air-collecting funnels26at their upper ends, preferably of thick rubber, secured at the baseto a metal ring 31.

same forms the subject-matter of another application filed in the UnitedStates Patent;' Office April 14, 1900, and serially numbered 1 In orderto anchor the boat, Iprovide the same with an anchor 34 of any suitabledesign, said anchor being attached to the end i of a chain, as 35, whichpasses around the bow of the boat and along a groove, as 36, formedv inthe lower edge of the keel 12, and into the 1 lower end of a pipe ortube 37, which passes up through the keel and the boat to the top At theupperend 1 thereof, as seen in Fig. 2. of the pipe 37 an enlargement, as38, is formed,

in which is mounted a sprocket wheel or pulley 39, over which the chain35 may be drawn.

The inner end of the chain 35 may be secured in boxes or lockers formedin the chamber 2.

The anchor 34 when not in use preferablylies upon the bow of the boatand maybe supported in place by a hook or any other suitablecontrivance. When the anchor is to be used, it is released fromthe saidhook and dropped from the bow of the boat, the chain being permitted topay out from the tube 37 until a suitable anchorage is obtained. It

. will benoticed that an anchor thus connected with the boat will pullupon the same at a I point about midway between the bow and the middleof the boat, so that the anchor will not have sufficient leverage uponthe bow to pull it underwater. In order to take up the anchor and returnit to its position on the boat, the chain 35 ,is pulled in to a properextent, and a double grapple, as 40, having a chain or rope secured. toeach end thereof, is

lowered beneath the bottom of the boat until it engages the chain, whenit may be used to pull the anchor up and hook it in place on the bow ofthe boat.

In order tosteer the boat, the rudder-stem extends upwardly into thestern of the boat and is engaged by a handle or lever 41, which projectsinto the chamber 4 and may be operated by the occupant of the saidchamber.

To propel the boat, I prefer to use a handoperated propeller, as 13,said propeller being provided with a suitable shaft 42, which extendsthrough proper packinglands into the body of the boat and carries at itsinner end a sprocket-wheel, as '43, which is connected, by means of asprocket-chain 44, with a sprocket power-wheel 45. The sprocketpowerwheel 45 is secured to a shaft 46, mounted in suitable hearings inthe chamber 2, said shaft being provided with suitable cranks, as 47 47.

The cranks are preferably operated by means of long rods or bars whichare socketed at one end in recesses in the cranks 47 and at the otherend are socketed or pivoted to suitable supports, as at 49 49, in thesaid chamber. By the use of these bars a larger number of people canoperate the cranks and drive the propeller with considerable power. Inorder to operate a pump, the shaft 46 is also provided with a crank 50,which is connected with a pump-piston bya pitman 51, the pump52 beingmounted upon the bottom of the chamber 2. It will be apparent that rigidhandlescould be secured'to the cranks 47 47 for erablya two-bladedpropeller and when not in use should be held in such a position that itsblades will be in the same plane as the plane of the keel, and thusofierthe least resistanceto the water. It will be apparent operating them,the handles being made of that a propeller having any number of bladescan be used without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I preferably form in the bottom of the boat a series of compartments, as54 54, which may be used for storing drinking-water orcontainingballast,orboth. Thesecompartments afford a standing-platformfor the occupants of the chamber 2. Seats, as 55, may be mounted on thetops of these compartments and on each side of the vessel for those inthe said compartment to rest upon.

As seen in Figs. 1 and 3, the buoyancy of the boat and the power toright itself are increased by means of cork belts, as 56, which extendalmost the entire length of the boat on each side thereof. A row oflights or windows, as 57, are also provided in each side of the boat, sothat the occupants can look out. These windows are preferably made inthe usual manner, with rubber packing and setscrews for holding themtightly in place and making them perfectly water-tight.

If it is desired to employ oars to row the boat when its hatches areopened, oar-locks, as 58, may be suitably mounted upon the fenders 15,which may be engaged by oars 59, made of suitable length.

If desired, straps may be secured to the inner surfaces of the hull, asseen in Fig. 2 of the drawings, or may be secured to the seats 55 toafford a means for the occupants of the boat to steady themselves.

It will be "evident also thatif more air is desired in the compartments3 and 4 a rubber hose with a funnel may be passed through the aprons 20to collect and admit the air required.

It will be apparent from the above description that my improvedlife-boat is simple in its construction and yet capable of beingmanipulated in all kinds of weather. It will also be apparent that anumber of people can occupy the life-boat and can assist in propellingit from place to place.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A life-boat comprising a hull made cylindrical and tapered at itsends, bulkheads mounted in the said boat dividing itinto variouscompartments, an anchor for holding the boat in place, when desired, atube extending into one of the compartments for accommodating theanchor-chain, a groove in the keel of the boat connected with the saidtube and extending to the end of the boat, whereby when the anchor iscarried by the boat, the chain will lie in the said groove and the saidtube and a pulley in the said tube over which the chain may be pulledfrom the interior of the boat to raise and lower the anchor,substantially as described.

2. A life-boat comprising a cylindrical hull having a central and endcompartments, bulkheads separating said compartments, hatchways in thehull leading out from said central compartment, and hatchways oropenings in the bulkheads, whereby access may be had to the endcompartments from the central one, and sliding doors for covering thehatches in the hull and sliding pivoted doors for closing the bulkheadsand openings or hatches, substantially as described.

3. A life-boat comprising a cylindrical hull having a centralcompartment and end compartments, a series of hatchways arranged at thetop of the central compartment, sliding doors, conforming to the shapeof the cylindrical hull and extending over said hatchways, whereby theyall may be closed by the operation of a single pair of doors, bulkheadsdividing the end compartments from the central compartment, hatchways oropenings in said bulkheads for permitting access to the end compartmentsfrom the central one, said hatchways being triangular in shape, andapproximately triangular doors pivotally secured to the bulkheads forclosing the triangular hatchways, the structure being such that theshape of the doors will permit of their being moved sufficiently far, inthe cylindrical hull, "to one side or the other of the openings toafford proper communication between the compartments, substantially asdescribed.

4:. In a boat, the combination with a suitable hull, of compartmentsformed therein, air-tubes entering the main compartment of the boat,guy-rods for supporting a mast in one of the tubes, substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

MARIUS P. HOY.

Witnesses:

FRANK J. MILLER, HERBERT N. DE WOLFE.

